Edo Castle, Japan
Early February 1837
The brazier had burned low by the time Abe entered the chamber.
The heat it gave off barely reached the edges of the room. Cold air clung to the floor, seeping through the layers of wood and stone, settling into sleeves and bones. Normally, someone would have added more charcoal before a meeting like this.
No one had bothered.
Abe lowered himself into position without a word.
Across from him, Matsudaira was already there.
Of course he was.
Back straight. Hands resting on his knees. Not stiff, not tense—just… set. Like a man who had already made his decision before anyone else had even arrived.
Hotta stood slightly behind, closer to the side of the room, quiet as ever. Watching. Always watching.
No one greeted each other.
No one needed to.
The news had spread before dawn. Faster than anyone expected. A foreign engineer stabbed. Inside the enclosure. Inside the space the shogunate had promised to control.
